Staff Reports
Chris Wallace’s career pivot from Fox News to CNN may go down in history as one of the most spectacular miscalculations in recent media history. Wallace, once touted as a paragon of journalistic integrity, has announced his exit from CNN just days after Donald Trump claimed victory in the 2024 election. The timing raises eyebrows and invites speculation about whether Wallace’s nerves were frazzled by the sight of a resurgent Trump with significant congressional support—something the Democrats and their media allies had hoped to avoid.
The former anchor expressed a renewed interest in the hot world of streaming and podcasting, areas that seem to energize him more than the dismal ratings at CNN. While Wallace pointed to the booming success of personalities like Joe Rogan, it’s hard not to chuckle at his plight; he’s unlikely to resonate with audiences who have fled from mainstream media in droves. After all, it’s one thing to ideologically tiptoe around the issues; it’s another to genuinely connect with a vast audience, which Wallace has repeatedly failed to do.
Chris Wallace is quitting CNN after only 3 years.
Even he knows legacy media is dead.
He plans to do independent streaming.
Hope it lasts longer than CNN+ 🙏 pic.twitter.com/M2mslezGvT
— Sara Rose 🇺🇸🌹 (@saras76) November 12, 2024
Media ratings tell a grim story for CNN. On election night, as Fox News dominated with nearly 10 million viewers, Wallace’s current home managed a paltry 4.7 million, reflecting a staggering 50 percent drop. This decline is indicative of a broader trend, with audiences growing increasingly distrustful of legacy cable news giants. With every new election cycle, the message seems clear: viewers are moving on from the once-revered news platforms to seek alternative sources for their information—those pesky independent outlets that offer a counter-narrative to the mainstream’s echo chamber.
Looking back, Wallace’s stint at CNN was a classic case of misplaced faith. Outfitted with a $9 million contract and a lofty title, he was expected to breathe new life into a network desperately clinging to its relevance. Instead, the results were less ‘CNN+’ and more ‘CNN-minus,’ as the service responsible for reviving Wallace’s career abruptly shuttered shortly after launch. While Wallace assured his small following that he had no regrets, one cannot help but wonder if his version of “liberation” includes a healthy side of embarrassment.
Ultimately, the departure of Chris Wallace from CNN isn’t just a personal reckoning. It symbolizes a broader rejection of the elite media narrative that has dominated U.S. political discourse for years. With the shocking swing of the electoral pendulum towards Trump, it seems more pundits, journalists, and analysts might want to reassess their alignment before it becomes as irrelevant as the network Wallace is leaving behind. A new chapter awaits him and likely a new audience—but whether that audience will care is an entirely different story.
